Electrical control of magnetism in spin-orbit coupled graphene multilayers

Abstract

Electrical control of magnetism has been a major techonogical pursuit of the spintronics community, owing to its far-reaching implications for data storage and transmission. Here, we propose and analyze a new mechanism for electrical switching of magnetism, using chiral-stacked graphene multilayers encapsulated by transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) substrates. Leveraging the proximityinduced spin-orbit coupling from the TMD, we demonstrate switching of correlation-induced spin or orbital ferromagnetism by reversing a perpendicular displacement field. We substantiate our proposal with both analytical arguments and self-consistent Hartree-Fock numerics based on realistic parameters. Finally, we illustrate how the displacement field can selectively switch orbital or spin polarization, putting forward correlated van der Waals heterostructures as promising platforms for spintronics and orbitronics.